This invention generally relates to a telephone paging system and method, and in particular to a system and method for transmitting paging signals based on calls directed to selected telephone extension lines.
It is not uncommon for people to be away from their telephones when they ring. If someone else is not present to pick up the call, an important message might be delayed or missed. And even if someone else does answer the phone, the message may still be delayed or missed if that person does not known the immediate whereabouts to how to contact the intended recipient. A missed, or even delayed, important message can have severe consequences (e.g., if the intended recipient is a doctor).
One solution to this problem has been the development of the paging terminal system which sends signals to a person wearing a remote pager device that informs him that someone is trying to contact him. When a person desires to contact a person subscribing to the paging terminal system (hereinafter "subscriber"), he calls a phone number corresponding to a central paging terminal. The particular phone number called may distinctively correspond to the particular pager worn by the intended subscriber, or the terminal may request the caller to enter a code distinctively corresponding to the subscriber. The paging terminal searches its data base to identify the particular subscriber corresponding to the number called or code number entered, what type of pager he wears, and what signals must be transmitted to activate the pager. A signal which activates the pager of the identified subscriber is then transmitted to all pagers within its range.
Conventional pagers can respond in a variety of ways to the transmitted signal. For example, they can produce a repetitive tone signal (e.g., a "beep") which notifies the subscriber to call an answering service to learn the identity of the caller or hear a recorded message, or they can produce an audio or visual signal containing the message that the subscriber can directly observe.
While this type of system informs a subscriber that someone is trying to contact him, it also has some drawbacks. For example, a caller may typically know the home or work phone numbers of the subscriber, which he may call first. If the subscriber is not present, the caller must known and remember the phone number of the subscriber's paging terminal and, possibly, an additional subscriber identification code. Thus, the caller must go through a number of steps before a paging signal is transmitted to the subscriber. Another drawback is that there is no interactive communication with the system after the subscriber receives the page. If the subscriber wears one of the relatively unsophisticated pagers that only produces a repetitive tone, he must call his answering service to find out the message or the identity of the caller who must then be contacted. Even if the subscriber wears a pager that transmits an audio or visual message, he must still contact the caller to clarify questions or to respond to the message.